Tag Archives: Breather

Hong Kong shares ended little changed on Tuesday, taking a breather after hitting eight-month in highs the previous session, as falls in IT and utility stocks offset gains in energy and property plays.

Markets were unfazed by data showing that China’s consumer price inflation eased to a six-month low, even as a long decline in producer prices continued to moderate, easing strains on some companies’ balance sheets, particularly in heavy industries.

Developer China Evergrande Group rose 0.9 percent, extending gains to the fourth straight day. The stock hit a three-month high after the company said it had bought a stake in rival Vanke and raised its stake in goods trading company Langfang Development Co Ltd to 15 percent.

European stocks slipped from a two-month high as investors assessed the implications of central-bank stimulus.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 0.4 percent to 376.04 at 4:33 p.m. in London, after climbing 3.9 percent last week. Energy and commodity producers led the decline, erasing earlier gains.

Europe’s benchmark gauge rallied the most since July in the final two days of last week as President Mario Draghi hinted that the European Central Bank may add to stimulus measures and the People’s Bank of China cut its benchmark lending rate and banks’ reserve requirements. That helped the Stoxx 600 break away from the tight range it had been trading in for two weeks.

Both the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan will give policy updates this week, with the U.S central bank announcing its rate decision on Oct. 28. Traders are pricing in a 4 percent chance of a Fed increase this month and 35 percent in December.